Is the 30 Day Blogging Challenge Any Good?

The next challenge issued by Nikki Pilkington was to write an opinon piece and give our thoughts about something topical. After thinking about it I thought ‘why not write a blog about the blog challenge?’

Most people who will/have signed up to the challenge will do so with the aim of improving more traffic to their blog and also to improve the way that the blog. From my point of view I had a blog but a) wasn’t getting an visitors and b) didn’t have a clue what to blog about. I didn’t go into the blog expecting for thousands of people viewing my blog every day; it takes time to build up a following. But I was willing to knuckle down and learn how to blog more effectively.

About Nikki Pilkington

NikkiPilkington.com is a major name in the world of internet marketing. Renowned across Europe for our innovative, experienced team of Internet Marketing experts primarily working with SMEs, we’ve made our name by delivering results

I had heard of Nikki before through web forums and from other people. All said the same thing; you get results. Considering that the 30 Day Blogging Challenge was free, what did I have to loose?

How it works
It’s simple (no really it is). Each day you will receive and e-mail from Nikki giving you instructions/ideas about what your next blog post can be about. It could be a specific topic, and idea, how to encourage comments or how to improve your blog’s SEO. For the record, after applying the guidance on SEO for one of my blog posts I was listed on the first page of google for the search ‘book-keeper in Pontefract’ (I’ve now dropped a few pages). This was achieved by doing 1 simple exercise. Some people pay £000′s to get results like this.

I’ve kept all the emails which have come through from Nikki so that if I am ever struggling in the future I will be able to refer back to them for guidance. All the emails are short and easy to understand so it wont take long to job my memory. You don’t have to blog about your chosen field of work; your blog can be an insight into your personality, which is more likey to attract new clients, visitors etc… than a fancy webstie

Does it Work?

Yes! What more do you need to know? Traffic to my blog has increased massively since taking part in the blogging challenge. So much so that I have decided to re-design my website using WordPress so that I can integrate a blog into it much more easily.

Whilst I’m very happy with the increased traffic and comments on the blog, I am more happy that I have come into contact with some fantastic people via Twitter. Most of the people taking the challenge are tweeting their blog posts using the #30dayblog hashtag. Twitter is great for engaging with other people and this blogging challenge has quickly built up a healthy following. Just to give you an idea of the success; from May 2010 – March 2011 my blog had 420 views. Since I started the blogging challenge in April the blog has had almost 600 views.

It’s simple, it works, it’s fun and it’s free. Sign up to it now.

If you are taking part in the blogging challenge what do you think about it?

Information About Pontefract

Day 23 of the 30 Day Blog and following on from a previous comment I’m going to blog a little bit about the town I live in: Pontefract.

I daresay that Pontefract isn’t a household name, but one of it’s biggest exports will be: Haribo. That’s right, Pontefract is the home to the UK arm of the world famous confectionery producer. Sweets such as Starmix, Tangfastics and Kiddies Supermix are all made in pontefract town centre. Demand for the products is so high that the company as recently been awarded a government grant towards building an additional factory a few miles away in Normanton

Pontefract isn’t just about sweets though. It is also a busy market town and has been since the middle ages. The main market is held on a Wednesday with smaller markets on a Friday and Saturday. Couple market day with good weather and the town centre is heaving with people looking for a bargain.

There is also Pontefract Castle which was the site of the demise of Richard II of England. The castle was constructed (approximately) in 1070 by Ilbert de Lacey on ground which had been given to him by William the Conqueror as a reward for his supprt during the Norman conquests. The castle is still a popular tourist attraction and has many events taking place throughout the year.

Just outside the town centre is Pontefract Racecourse which is the longest continuous racing circuit in the country at just over 2 miles. There are numerous race meetings here during the season, and the facilities are very good with modern bars and refreshments in all enclosures. The racecourse is situated in Pontefract Park which is open all year round to the general public. On a warm suumer’s evening it is not unusual to find lots of people running around the racecourse to keep fit. There are also several travelling circuses and fairs which visit the park during the year.

I hope you enjoyed this brief blog about the town where I live…

What do you want?

Whilst I sit here and decide what content to blog about based on my own ideas and what the 30 day blog challenge emails suggest, it could be that no-one is interested in my content!

Book-Keeping & Accountancy isn’t the subject on the tip of everyone’s tongue as they sit around the dinner table or have a drink at the pub, but I am more than what my trade suggests; I am a person with other interests and hobbies.

Each one of us has a different background and interests, is there anything you would like me to blog about to make you want to visit the blog more? Ideas could be:

• Current sport stories/events
• Current affairs
• More about my hobbies
• Something totally random

Of course, you can always suggest ideas to me……

Blog Round-Up

If you’ve not visited the blog for a while, here is a round-up of some of the posts over the last few weeks:

• How did it all begin? a short piece about why I chose this field of work
• Twitter or Facebook? My thoughts on using Twitter and a few tips I’ve picker up
• Can a match mend a door? A bit of DIY advice here
• More Bloggers A selection of some other people taking part in the 30 day blog

Top 5 FAQs

As part of my 30 day blog I have been asked to write a ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ post about what I do and how I can help you:

1) What can I claim as a business expense? 

Each and every business is different, but this post: Business Expenses will help to clarify the situation for you. If you are unsure, just give all your receipts to your bookkeeper/accountant to sort through, that is what you pay them to do!

2) When does my tax have to be paid by?

The tax you owe needs to be paid by the 31st January the following year (31/01/12 for the 2010/11 tax year). In some instances you will be required to make a payment on account by the 31st July.

3) When do you need my records by?

My own personal preference is for you to send your records to me as soon as you can, that way any errors/discrepancies can be picked up on quickly, and you will not be left with a nasty surprise if you have a large tax bill. Depending on the size of the business the accounts may need to be done monthly or quarterly. If you are unsure of anything make a note about it so that you do not forget when you go to see your bookkeeper/accountant

4) How much should I put aside for my tax? 

Again, everyone’s circumstances are different with this one. But if you are self employed I would advise to put aside 20-25% of your earnings for the end of year tax bill. Try putting the money into an ISA so that you can gain some tax-free interest on it.

5) Do you charge for phone calls/emails?

I am surprised at how often I am asked this question. The answer is always ‘no’. I only ever charge a fixed fee and that includes everything: phone calls, emails, visits etc…

If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me via the blog or email